BATE slip to shock home defeat by Shakhter
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
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BATE Borisov 0-1 Shakhter Karagandy
Last season's group stage contenders were undone by Sergei Khizhnichenko's second-half goal for the champions of Kazakhstan.
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Kazakhstani side FC Shakhter Karagandy caused quite a stir by winning 1-0 away to last season's UEFA Champions League group stage contenders FC BATE Borisov in today's second qualifying round first leg in Belarus.
The key moment came three minutes after half-time when Sergei Khizhnichenko's low shot beat BATE keeper Andrei Gorbunov for the only goal. Although BATE – one of just two teams to beat eventual champions FC Bayern München in the 2012/13 competition – dominated possession, they were unable to break down Viktor Kumykov's tactically adept troops who afforded them no space throughout a tight encounter in Borisov.
Home coach Viktor Goncharenko saw a one-on-one opportunity go to waste when Vitali Rodionov was unable to outwit Aleksandr Mokin soon after the half-hour mark, while Ilya Aleksievich's header drew a save from Mokin moments before the interval.
Shakhter, whose sole first-half attempt of note had been a speculative long-range shot from Roger Cañas, then delivered the sucker punch of Khizhnichenko's goal, which came following good work by Aleksandar Simčević. A remarkable result was secured for the away side when Mokin kept out Rodionov's strike from distance late on. The tie resumes in Karagandy next Tuesday, 23 July.